Token Economies The Scooby Doo Classroom

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Token EconomiesThe Scooby Doo Classroom

• Development and Generalization of adaptive
  behaviors through contrived reinforcement programs

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Advantages of Token Economies

• Immediate, unobtrusive delivery of reinforcers
• Allows for delay of reinforcement
• More and more frequent reinforcement can be
  delivered and for a longer time
• Ease of generalization
• Greater individuality of reinforcement
• Structures administrators attention and reduces
  subjectivity
• Allows for differential valuing of performance

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Disadvantages of Token Economies

• Requires that goals be concrete and specific
• Can lead to dependency if weaning not done
• Requires a great deal of structure and
  organization by the administrator
• Can be costly if tangible reinforcers used
• May prevent or distract administrator from
  learning more appropriate strategies for
  controlling behavior
• May be easily abused
• Requires much time and attention

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When to Use Token Economies

• WHEN ALL ELSE FAILS Other, less intrusive,
  strategies have been tried and found not to work
• When behavior problems are severe and require a
  highly structured, consistent, predictable
  environment
• When clients cannot wait an extended time for
  rewards

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Setting Up a Token Economy 1Selecting Backup
Reinforcers

• Select the least intrusive reinforcers you can
  get away with
• Select reinforcers that are interesting to the
  clients
• Have a variety of reinforcers available
• Include occasional bonus or surprise reinforcers
• Periodically change the backup reinforcers to
  prevent satiation

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Setting Up a Token Economy 2Selecting Tokens
Characteristics

• They should be available in large amounts
• They should be durable
• They should be interesting and attractive
• They should be dispensible without intruding into
  or distracting from ongoing activities
• They should not be reproducible or available
  other than through the program
• They should be difficult to steal or extort from
  each other

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Setting Up a Token Economy 3Types of Tokens to
Consider

• Tangibles (e.g., buttons, poker chips, counters,
  washers, stars, paper clips, play money, marbles)
  1.
  Preferably, use soft tokens if noise may be a
  problem
  2. Use a receptacle to hold tokens
• Symbolic tokens (e.g., checkmarks, points, happy
  faces, stamps, stickers, etc.

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Example of Token Economy System
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Example of Token Economy System
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Example of Token Economy System
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Setting Up a Token Economy 4Setting Prices for
Backup Reinforcers

• Use law of supply and demand
• Consider therapeutic value of the behavior
• Have a variety of prices
• Set prices before dispensing tokens
• Initially, set prices so that everyone has the
  opportunity to purchase backup reinforcers
• Let clients know in advance what the prices of
  the backup reinforcers will be
• After the first exchange or two, do not announce
  prices until exchange time
• Change prices after each exchange

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Setting Up a Token Economy 5Identifying Target
Behaviors

• Target behaviors should be specific and precise
• Target behaviors should be observable and
  measurable
• Target behaviors should readily transfer to the
  real world

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Setting Up token Economies 6Establishing Rules

• Rules should be stated positively and emphasize
  productivity and achievement
• Rules should be understood and remembered by all
  clients in the program
• Keep the list of rules relatively short
• Allow clients to help in establishing the rules
• Incorporate procedures for changing rules and for
  arbitration of rule disputes

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Setting Up a Token Economy 7Keeping Records

• Program effectiveness is greatly enhanced by
  accurate and complete record keeping
• Continuous records should be kept concerning
  
  1. The occurrence or nonoccurrence of target
  behaviors
  2. The time and number of tokens delivered to
  each student
  3. The time and frequency of token
  exchanges

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Running the Token Economy 1Getting Started

• Sampling the backup reinforcers
  1. Demonstrate the reinforcers, allowing
  clients to sample them
  2. Make the reinforcers
  appealing to the clients (sell them)
• Establishing the value of the tokens
• The 1st day, give each client a token for doing
  something appropriate immediately, explaining how
  to earn them and what they can be exchanged for

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Running the Token Economy 2 Beginning the
Program and Dispensing the Tokens

• Initially, dispense tokens often, gradually
  decreasing the no. after a few days
• Dispense tokens immediately and quickly
• Always mention the clients name and the behavior
  that is being reinforced
• Dispense tokens quietly and unobtrusively so as
  not to focus attention on them
• Dont mention tokens when dispensing

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Running the Token Economy 3Token Exchange Times

• Initially, have frequent exchanges
• Exchange times should become less and less
  frequent
• The next exchange time should be announced in
  advance
• Set a limit on how many tokens a client may
  accumulate or carry over from one exchange time
  to another, perhaps by losing all unspent tokens

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Phasing Out the Token Economy 1Naturalizing the
Program (Weaning)

• Introduce and gradually increase delays in the
  delivery of reinforcement
• Make dispensing of tokens increasingly random and
  intermittent
• Gradually switch from token reinforcement to more
  natural reinforcers
• Make the tokens increasingly less valuable to the
  clients

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Phasing Out the Token Economy 2Earning Off
the System

• Clients maintaining a specified standard of
  appropriate behavior should be allowed to get off
  the token system
• Clients earning a predetermined minimum no. of
  daily tokens should be given special bonus earn
  off points
• Clients need to be motivated to earn off
  1. Give bonus prizes to graduates
  2. Give graduates noncontingent
  access to backup reinforcers
  3. Give
  graduates special privileges

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Phasing Out the Token Economy 3Transferring
Control to Clients

• Control of the program can gradually be
  transferred to the clients
• Clients should be given increasingly greater
  responsibility for
  1. deciding which behaviors
  need changing 2. how many tokens it should
  earn 3. determining when the
  behavior occurs 4. dispensing the
  tokens upon completion of the target behaviors
  5.
  exchanging tokens for the backup
  

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Using Punishment in a Token Economy 1 Response
Cost

• Remove a previously determined number of tokens
  or points for previously identified unacceptable
  behavior
• If a client resists, penalize additional points
• Include rule violations as part of the backup
  menu (must pay for misbehavior)
• Do not overpenalize or tokens may lose their
  value and clients motivation to perform may be
  reduced
• Reserve penalties for the worst offenses

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Using Punishment in Token Economy 2 Timeout

• Response cost is the preferred form of punishment
• Use timeout from token spending if response cost
  does not work in which a specific time period is
  designated when a student may not exchange earned
  tokens
• Use timeout from the opportunity to earn tokens

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Problems in Token Economies IClient-Related
Problems

• Hassles, arguments, and complaints clients may
  attempt to get unearned tokens or backup
  reinforcers for which they have insufficient
  tokens
• Hoarding (failure to exchange tokens)
• Counterfeiting, theft, and extortion which may
  result from insufficient monitoring of token
  administration
• Unresponsive clients

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Fixing Problems in Token Economies 1 Hassles,
Arguments, Complaints Hoarding

• Avoid hassles, arguments, complaints, attempts at
  bargaining by ignoring them
• Ignore any mention of tokens except at exchange
  times
• If the problem persists, impose a penalty
• For hoarding, following token exchange, clients
  should lose all unspent tokens

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Fixing Problems in Token Economies 2
Unresponsive Clients

• Do not require unresponsive clients to
  participate for about a week
• After about a week, prime them by giving them a
  free day in which noncontingent tokens are
  given which can be exchanged for backup
  reinforcers
• The next day, make it easy for them to earn
  tokens, gradually increasing requirements

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Fixing Problems in Token Economies 3
Counterfeiting, Theft, and Extortion

• Individualize and customize the tokens so that
  they are identifiable as belonging to a
  particular client and cannot be reproduced
• Keep duplicate records of number of tokens earned
  by each client
• Punish these offenses with response cost or
  timeout

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Problems in Token Economies IIAdministrator-Rela
ted Problems

• Using tokens as bribes or threats which focus
  undue attention on the tokens and causes clients
  to become overly dependent on the tokens and
  develops a mercenary attitude on the part of
  clients
• Feeling sorry for clients who are short of tokens

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Fixing Problems in Token Economies 4 Presenting
Noncontingent Tokens

• Do not extend charity or loans as these destroy
  the contingent relationship between behavior and
  reinforcer
• If a client is continually short of tokens
  something is wrong with the program
• Too much may be expected of the client
• The client may be excessively ignored

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Problems in Token Economies IIISystem-Related
Problems

• Token inflation (gradual increase in prices of
  backup reinforcers) due to clients earning too
  many tokens (too lenient?)
• Token depression (gradual decrease in prices of
  back reinforcers) due to clients earning too few
  tokens (too strict?)
• Confusion possibly due to the program being too
  complex

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Fixing Problems in Token Economies 4 Token
Inflation, Deflation, Confusion

• Adjust contingencies so students are not earning
  too many or too few tokens by making
  contingencies stricter or more lenient, as
  appropriate
• Make sure that a reasonable number of tokens is
  being earned
• Confusion is to be expected initially but if the
  problem does not work itself out in a few days,
  institute a simpler program